Around Us

Published 7:00 pm, Thursday, June 5, 2008

AMARILLO - A pile of tires and trash caught fire Thursday afternoon on East Amarillo Boulevard, sending a black cloud of smoke billowing into the air and forcing residents of a nearby apartment complex to evacuate.

Onlookers watched smoke rising from the 1 p.m. blaze just south of the boulevard as firefighters ran hoses across the 7600 block of the boulevard to hydrants on the north side. Police blocked traffic approaching from the west and from Loop 335.

Although the fire occurred in a junkyard about 100 feet from the apartment complex, the fire did not damage any structures. Sustained winds of 25 mph and gusting to 46 mph out of the southwest kept the fire clear of the apartments. No injuries were reported.

The fire singed two acres of grass east of the tire pile - which stood about 4 feet tall - before firefighters got the blaze under control at 2:04 p.m. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

About 10 Amarillo firetrucks, two Potter County trucks, a water tanker and a couple of city road graders responded to the scene. - Amarillo Globe-News

AMARILLO - Potter County Sheriff Mike Shumate's old friends came to court Thursday, but not in his defense.

Former Chief Deputy Ken Farren and Beverly Shumate testified in the sheriff's public corruption trial Thursday at Potter County Courthouse.

Beverly Shumate, the sheriff's former wife, confirmed she saw him accept cash from Jack Madera, former owner of Mid-America Services Inc., on three occasions and suspected two other transactions.

Shumate is on trial for allegedly accepting bribes from Mid-America, a Dallas food service company, and its president, Robert Wayne Austin Jr., to ensure the company received the county jail's commissary and food service contracts. Shumate also faces two felonies for allegedly accepting illegal campaign contributions.

The transactions Beverly Shumate described coincide with large cash withdrawals from bank accounts controlled by Madera. However, Mid-America employee Traci Parsley testified large cash withdrawals were not unusual for Madera, who had many business investments and often gambled.

Beverly Shumate said she began to suspect her husband accepted money from Madera after she began searching his briefcase and going through his wallet at night, often finding $300 to $400 in cash hidden in different spots.

Beverly Shumate's testimony quickly began to show the decline of their marriage and behavior she said she was now not proud of. She admitted she threatened Mike Shumate and told numerous people she would see that he was ruined.

Farren testified for a short time Thursday and stated he served on a commissary committee in 2003 that selected Mid-America to handle the jail's services. He said the committee thought another company had a better presentation and software, but Mid-America was selected because of Madera's history in food service.

Farren is expected to continue his testimony when the case resumes Monday morning. - Amarillo Globe-News

LUBBOCK - Lubbock investigators were following up on leads Thursday on two different cases - one left a woman dead and the other left a man fighting for his life.

Police said they had several leads in the cases but nothing that has led to the suspects they are seeking.

At about 11 p.m. Tuesday, a vehicle hit and killed Gloria Benson, 47, as she was walking in the 3800 block of Interstate 27. Investigators first thought Benson had been pushed into traffic but later ruled it a hit-and-run accident.

Police are looking for the vehicle and driver that hit her and fled the scene. The vehicle is described as a dark-colored pickup, possibly red and possibly a 1998-2001-model Chevrolet Silvarado or GMC Sierra. The driver could be charged with failure to stop and render aid.

Officers also are searching for two suspects wanted for the attempted capital murder of a Lubbock man.

A suspected car burglar shot Felipe Acevedo, 40, in the head at about 3:45 a.m. Wednesday at the Cora Apartments, 301 Avenue U. Police said he witnessed two men breaking into his vehicle and started banging on his second-floor bedroom window to scare them away. One of the men fired several shots at him with a large-caliber handgun.

Acevedo remained in critical but stable condition Thursday at University Medical Center.

One suspect in the shooting was described as white and the other as Hispanic, and both were possibly in their early 20s. - Lubbock Avalanche-Journal